1、Sister Carrie,Theodore Dreise 姚夢夢,Theodore Dreiser,Dreiser, Theodore (Herman Albert) Born: August 27, 1871, in Terre Haute, Indiana Died: December 28, 1945, in Los Angeles, California. Vocations: Novelist, Playwright, Editor, Memoirist Short Story Writer Poet, Journalist,Works:,Sister Carrie. 嘉莉妹妹（1

2、900年） Jennie Gerhardt. 珍妮姑娘 （1911年） The Financier.金融家（1912年） The Titan.巨人（1914年） . The “Genius”.天才（1915年）. An American Tragedy.美國的悲?。?925年） The Bulwark.堡壘（1942年） The Stoic.斯多葛 （1945年）,Dreiser was a naturalistic author who was instrumental in promoting a realistic portrayal of life in America, and he

3、 was not afraid to write about sexual matters and social injustice. Two of his most well-known novels, Sister Carrie and An American Tragedy, depicted characters who were motivated by their selfish impulses, not by their sense of ethics. These novels were met with much controversy by his conservativ

4、e contemporaries.,American Naturalism,Literary movement From the 1880s to 1940s Social conditions, heredity, environment had inescapable force in shaping human character Outgrowth of literary realism Influenced by Darwins theory of evolution,Background,Emergence of “Modern America” New ideas about m

5、an and mans place in the universe took root in America The literary climate was changing,Characteristics,Pessimism Detachment from the story Determinism A surprising twist at the end of the story,Sister Carrie,The beginning of the story: Dissatisfied with life in her rural Wisconsin home, 18 year-ol

6、d Caroline Sister Carrie Meeber takes the train to Chicago, where her older sister Minnie, and her husband Sven Hanson, have agreed to take her in. Then she leaves her rural home to seek work in Chicago.,On the train, Carrie meets Charles Drouet, a traveling salesman, who is attracted to her because

7、 of her simple beauty and unspoiled manner. They exchange contact information, but upon discovering the steady round of toil and somber atmosphere at her sisters flat, she writes to Drouet and discourages him from calling on her there.,Carrie soon takes a job running a machine in a shoe factory. Bef

8、ore long, she can not stand the job and she also senses Minnie and Svens disapproval of her interest in Chicagos recreational opportunities, particularly the theatre. One day, she encounters Drouet in a street. He opens a vista of material possibilities to her. And persuades her to live out. That ni

9、ght, she writes a good-bye note to Minnie and moves in with Drouet.,She acquires a sophisticated wardrobe andsheds her provincial mannerisms, even as she struggles with the moral implications of being a kept woman. By the time Drouet introduces Carrie to George Hurstwood, the manager of Hannah and H

10、oggs - a respectable bar that Drouet describes as a way-up, swell place her material appearance has improved considerably. Hurstwood, unhappy with and distant from his social-climbing wife and children, instantly becomes infatuated with Carries youth and beauty, and before long they start an affair,

11、 communicating and meeting secretly in the expanding, anonymous city.,Carrie long has harbored theatrical ambitions and has a natural aptitude for imitation and expressing pathos. Drouet casually offer a role for Carrie and her performance is stunning. Climax: Later, Drouet discovers he has been cuc

12、kolded, Carrie learns that Hurstwood is married, and Hurstwoods wife, Julia found that his husband has been out driving with another woman. Then Hurstwood stumbles upon a large amount of cash and he lures Carrie onto a train and escapes with her to Canada.,Once they arrive in Montreal, Hurstwoods gu

13、ilty conscience and a private eye - induce him to return most of the stolen funds, but he realizes that he cannot return to Chicago. Hurstwood mollifies Carrie by agreeing to marry her, and the couple move to New York City. They live as George and Carrie Wheeler. The end: They live together for thre

14、e years more. Carrie becomes mature in intellect and emotion, while Hurstwood steadily declines. At last, she thinks him too great a burden and leaves him. Hurstwood sinks lower and lower. After becoming a beggar, he commits suicide, while Carrie becomes a star of musical comedy,but finds that money

15、 and fame do not satisfy her longings or bring her happiness and that nothing will.,Living in a poor and intensely religious family,Dreiser had a very unhappy childhood.A world of jungle where kill or to be killed was the law can be found in Dreisers fictions.In Sister Carrie Dreiser expressed his n

16、aturalistic pursuit by expounding the purposelessness of life and attacking the conventional moral standards. Sister Carrie best embodies Dreisers naturalistic belief that while men are controlled and conditioned by heredity, instinct and chance, a few extraordinary and unsophisticated human beings

17、refuse to accept their fate wordlessly and instead to strive unsuccessfully, to find meaning and purpose for their existence. Carrie, as one of such senses that she is merely a cipher in an uncaring world yet seeks to grasp the mysteries of life and thereby satisfies her desires for social status an

18、d material comfort.,To satisfies her disires for social status and material comfort Sister Carrie naively puts her stakes on two men, first Drouet then Hurstwood. While this proved to no avail, she starts striving by her own. This is against the convention that a woman can only hope her marriage bri

19、ng her worldly success.,In Sister, Carrie Dreiser expressed his naturalistic pursuit by expounding the purposelessness of life and attacking the conventional moral standardsAfter a series of incidental and coincidentCarrie obtains fame and comfort while Hurstwood loses his wealth，social position，pri

20、de and eventually his lifeCarrie，as one of such，senses that she is merely a cipher in an uncaring world yet seeks to grasp the mysteries of life and thereby satisfies her desires for social Status and material comfortIn Sister Carrie，Dreiser expressed his naturalistic pursuit by expounding the purposelessness of life and importance of men,Sister Carrie tells the story of two characters：an ordinary girl who rises from a low paid wage earner